Splitting turns two matching cards into two separate hands. Add a second bet equal to your first, then play each hand against the same dealer.
With no surrender in this six-deck game, split aces and eights and keep tens and fives together. The other pairs depend on the dealer’s upcard, and on whether you can double after splitting.
Two bets. Two outcomes. One decision to make first.
Pick your pair and the dealer’s face-up card. You get the play, the reason and the rule that matters.
Six decks · dealer checks for blackjack · double on any first two cards.
Dealer stands on soft 17 · no surrender
Late surrender happens after the dealer checks for blackjack. With H17 and late surrender, 8,8 against an ace becomes a surrender.
8,8 against 10 · DAS · S17
Splitting returns −$4.85 per $10 on average, hitting −$5.35: a losing spot either way, and the split loses less.
Add one equal bet. Both hands can still lose.
It is basic strategy for your first two cards, solved for the exact pair in a six-deck game where the dealer checks for blackjack, so against a 10 or an ace the dealer has already ruled out a natural. Split hands can be hit and, with DAS, doubled; split aces get one card each. It is not a card-counting tool. No-hole-card games, single decks and variants need their own chart.
You add a new $10 bet; you do not split your first $10 in half. Each hand is settled separately against the dealer.
Add another $10 to split.
One $10 win and one $10 loss cancel out: no profit or loss.
A double adds another $10 to that hand and limits it to one more card.
These are payout examples, not dealt cards. Ordinary wins pay even money: a winning hand returns its stake plus the profit, a push returns its stake. An ace and a ten after a split pay as an ordinary 21, not a 3-to-2 blackjack.
You need another full bet, and you choose before hitting.
You need a pair, such as 8 + 8, and the dealer’s upcard in view. A three-card 16 cannot be split.
Place another $10 beside your $10 bet and let the dealer separate the cards. Online, the Split button takes the extra bet.
Finish the first hand, then the second; each settles on its own. Split aces usually get one card each.
Six decks, dealer checks for blackjack, no surrender, double after split unless stated. Figures are per $10 of the original bet.
Split.
Together they are a soft 12. Apart, each ace gets a new partner: splitting returns +$6.81 per $10 against +$1.89 for hitting.
A split ace and a ten is an ordinary 21, paid even money.
Split.
Hard 16 is the worst total in the game. Splitting returns −$4.85 per $10, hitting −$5.35: a losing spot either way, and the split loses less.
The best play does not mean a likely win.
Stand on 18.
Eighteen already beats a dealer’s 17. Standing returns +$3.99 per $10, splitting +$3.69.
Make the dealer’s card an 8 or a 9 and it becomes a split.
Double; hit if you cannot.
The useful thing is the total of 10. Doubling returns +$5.98 per $10; splitting into two hands from five, +$0.93.
No DAS does not stop you doubling the unsplit 5 + 5.
Split with DAS. Hit without it.
A hand from a four can turn into a double. With DAS, splitting returns +$1.60 per $10 against +$1.25 for hitting; without it, the split drops to +$0.33.
The same applies to 4 + 4 against a dealer 5.
Stand on 20.
A weak dealer card does not make every split good. Standing returns +$7.03 per $10; splitting +$5.66.
The same for J + J, Q + Q, K + K and mixed tens.
DAS means double after split. The last column covers the dealer cards outside the splitting range.
| Your pair | Split with DAS | Split without DAS | Otherwise |
|---|---|---|---|
| A,A | 2–A | 2–A | Split against everything |
| 2,2 | 2–7 | 4–7 | Hit |
| 3,3 | 2–7 | 4–7 | Hit |
| 4,4 | 5–6 | None | Hit |
| 5,5 | None | None | Double against 2–9; hit against 10 and A |
| 6,6 | 2–6 | 3–6 | Hit |
| 7,7 | 2–7 | 2–7 | Hit |
| 8,8 | 2–A | 2–A | Split against everything |
| 9,9 | 2–6, 8 and 9 | 2–6, 8 and 9 | Stand against 7, 10 and A |
| 10,10 | None | None | Stand |
10 includes J, Q and K. With late surrender and a dealer who hits soft 17, 8,8 against an ace becomes a surrender; everything else holds under both dealer rules.
A pair gives you a choice: keep the total you have, or add a bet and start two new hands. The right comparison counts both split hands and the extra money at risk.
With two eights against a ten, every play loses on average. Splitting is still the best of them: the two new hands together lose less than hitting the 16.
With two tens against a six the logic reverses. Your 20 is already strong; two new hands can both win, but breaking the 20 gives up value.
Across the whole game the option is worth about half a percent of every bet: the same six-deck game costs 0.97% with splitting forbidden and 0.46% with it allowed. The house edge calculator prices it against every other rule.
Average net result per $10 original bet. Six decks, dealer stands on soft 17, double after split, these exact cards.
Splitting cuts the average loss by about $0.50 per $10 bet in this spot.
A split commits at least $20. Its average counts both hands and any doubles they can take. Not a single-hand payout.
Solved by our engine from the exact pair and upcard with a full six-deck shoe, dealer blackjack ruled out. The split figure counts both hands and the doubles they are allowed; the keep figure is the best of standing, hitting and doubling the pair as it is. They are averages over repeated identical situations, per $10 of the original bet, not a forecast for the next hand.
The pairs people hesitate over. The double-after-split rule is shown on each hand, and every answer comes with the numbers.
No money involved. Six decks, dealer checks for blackjack, dealer stands on soft 17, no surrender. Want more than six? The basic strategy trainer deals hands for as long as you like.
Match your pair, the dealer’s upcard and the table rules in the table above or the checker. The recommended split has the best average result; it can still lose.
In the six-deck game where the dealer checks for blackjack and there is no surrender, yes. With late surrender and a dealer who hits soft 17, 8,8 against an ace is a surrender, and no-hole-card games differ too.
You already have 18 against a dealer who makes 17 most often. Standing returns +$3.99 per $10, splitting +$3.69. Split nines against 2 to 6, 8 and 9.
No. Play fives as a hard 10: double against 2 to 9, otherwise hit. Stand on any pair of tens; against a six, standing returns +$7.03 per $10 and splitting +$5.66.
No. You need a two-card pair. A matching card dealt to a split hand may let you split again.
You can usually hit a split hand. Doubling needs the DAS rule. Split aces normally stop after one card, whatever the other rules say.
Normally not. A split ace and a ten is an ordinary 21 and wins even money; only the first two cards of a hand can be a natural.
Every bet you placed. Two $10 hands can lose $20; double both and it is $40; splitting again adds more. The worked example above separates the chips returned from the profit or loss.
At tables that accept any two ten-value cards, yes; at tables that want the same rank, no. Either way, stand on the 20.
Then you cannot split; play the total. With 8,8 against a 10 that means hitting the 16, which costs about $0.50 per $10 against the split. Leave room for splits and doubles when you pick a bet size.
Two bets, two hands, and a short list that covers most of it.
Aces escape a soft 12; eights escape the worst total in the game. A 20 is already made, and two fives are a hard 10 that doubles.
Twos, threes and sevens split against 2 to 7; sixes against 2 to 6; nines everywhere except a 7, 10 or ace; fours only against a 5 or 6.
Without it, twos and threes wait for a 4, sixes for a 3, and fours never split. Check the rule before you sit; it is worth about 0.12% of every bet.